No snitches for ‘Stitches’: Texas college sues to keep mum on Shawn Mendes contract

Kelsey Bradshaw, Austin American-Statesman

Wednesday

Feb 13, 2019 at 9:45 AM

Have you ever wondered what Canadian singer-songwriter Shawn Mendes contractually requires before he takes the stage? One Texas university doesn’t want you to know.

The University of Texas at El Paso is requesting to withhold the “Stitches” singer’s contracts for an October performance at the university, a lawsuit filed in Travis County says.

Mendes, who sang with Miley Cyrus at this year’s Grammy Awards, performed at the West Texas university on Oct. 13 at the Don Haskins Center, the lawsuit says. That same day, the university received an open records request asking for a copy of Mendes’ contract with the school and his contract rider, which includes Mendes’ technical, production and hospitality requirements.

After receiving the request, the university requested an opinion from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton as to whether the contract information can be excluded from disclosure under a state code regarding marketplace competitors.“This provision protects disclosure information that, if released, would compromise the body’s competitive advantage in the marketplace by placing confidential pricing information in a public forum,” the lawsuit says.

Paxton agreed that some of the information could be withheld, the lawsuit says. But the university is now requesting that the entire contract and contract rider be protected from disclosure, according to the lawsuit. The university said Paxton has previously ruled that it could withhold entire similar contracts, the suit says.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.